特斯拉50亿美元超级电池厂大猜想

潜在合作伙伴

    特斯拉还表示，公司将选择一家电池厂商，以及电池原料（如锂、锂、镍、钴、和电解质）供应商进行合作。根据特斯拉的计划，合作公司将共同承担Gigafactory的成本，而特斯拉自身将直接投资约20亿美元。

    特斯拉还没有透露合作公司的名字。然而，在公司第四季度业绩发布会上，CEO穆斯克曾经提道，根据公司的设想，可能会继续选择电池供应商松下电器（Panasonic）作为合作伙伴。

    松下电器（它同时还为特斯拉供应汽车电子部件）发言人吉姆•赖利说，公司正在寻找各种方式以加强同特斯拉的合作关系。但双方还未做出任何正式决定。

    松下电器从2009年开始就一直在与特斯拉有合作——最开始是作为特斯拉的电池供应商，后来成为特斯拉投资人。2010年，松下电器为特斯拉投资了3,000万美元。去年，松下电器同意扩大供应计划，在接下来四年中为特斯拉供应约20亿块电池。这些电池将为Model S以及Model X轿车提供动力。Model X是一辆运动型多功能轿车，预计于今年年末投产。

    然而根据杰夫的说法，特斯拉同时也在审查其它电池供应商。特斯拉通过了对好几家公司的认证，如韩国LG化学公司（LG Chem）和三星SDI（Samsung SDI），以及中国的比亚迪汽车公司（BYD）等。杰夫说：“特斯拉实质上已经给出了预计生产电池的规格，也承认这几家厂商都具备生产这种电池的能力。”

    这一点意味着，特斯拉可以同时从好几家供应商订购电池——但杰夫说，特斯拉不太可能在Gigafactory项目上选择一家以上的厂商进行合作。

    其它有可能合作的电池厂商包括中国的天津力神电池股份有限公司（Lishen）、东莞新能源科技有限公司（ATL）和索尼公司（Sony）等——但杰夫说，选择这些公司的可能性很小。

Potential partners

    Tesla also said it will partner with a battery manufacturer as well as companies that supply the precursor materials (such as lithium, nickel, cobalt, and electrolytes) needed to make the batteries. Under the plan floated by Tesla, the partners will share the cost of the Gigafactory. Tesla will directly invest about $2 billion.

    Tesla has not yet named any partners. However, in the company's fourth-quarter earnings call last month, Musk did say the assumption is that its current battery cell supplier Panasonic would continue to be a partner.

    Panasonic spokesman Jim Reilly said the company, which also supplies Tesla with automotive electronics components, is looking into a variety of options to further strengthen its collaborative relationship with Tesla Motors. But nothing formal has been decided, Reilly said.

    Panasonic has had a relationship with Tesla -- first as a battery cell supplier, later as an investor -- since 2009. The company invested $30 million in Tesla in 2010. Last year, Panasonic agreed to expand its arrangement and supply Tesla with nearly 2 billion cells over the course of four years. The battery cells will be used to power the Model S as well as Model X, a sport utility vehicle scheduled to go into production by the end of this year.

    Still, Tesla has vetted other battery cell suppliers, Jaffe said. And it has certified other companies, including the Korean firms LG Chem and Samsung SDI and China's BYD. "Tesla has essentially given the specs of the cell they want built for its battery and have confirmed that [each] manufacturer is capable of doing it," Jaffe said.

    Which means Tesla could order battery cells from several suppliers -- though it is unlikely that the automaker will choose more than one manufacturer to partner with on the Gigafactory, Jaffe said.

    Other potential battery manufacturer partners include China's Lishen, ATL, and Sony -- a long shot, Jaffe said.